AN UNEXPECTED AFTERLIFE by Dan Sofer

 










AN UNEXPECTED AFTERLIFE
An Adventure in the Jewish Resurrection
The Dry Bones Society
Book One
by
Dan Sofer

SYNOPSIS
Moshe Karlin wakes up one morning, naked and alone, in the Mount of Olives Cemetery. According to his family and friends, he died two years ago, but Moshe is not about to accept his demise lying down.

Is his new lease on life a freak of nature or the start of the long-awaited Resurrection? Moshe doesn't really care. He vows to beat his "afterlife crisis" and win back his life-and his wife-if it is the last thing he does.

But the road ahead is full of unexpected dangers. Along the way he gains insight into life, love, and the Jewish State, as well as the suspicion that perhaps his perfect first life was not so perfect after all.

Meanwhile, other changes are afoot in the Holy Land. A reluctant prophet prepares to deliver a message of redemption-and the end of life as we know it-when a freak accident changes the course of history.

Readers who enjoy the satire and humor of Kurt Vonnegut, Carl Hiaasen, Terry Pratchett, and Douglas Adams will enjoy this intriguing and humorous mystery in the Jewish lore and legends of the Resurrection, the World to Come, and the Messianic Era.

AMAZON BUY LINK 

About Dan Sofer

Dan Sofer won the 2016 Best Book Award (category: religious fiction) for his debut novel, A Love and Beyond ("A mysterious crime. A ruthless secret society. And a desperate bachelor...")

His romantic adventures and magical satires explore Jewish lore and legend on the streets of modern-day Jerusalem.

His new novel, An Unexpected Afterlife, hits the shelves March 28, 2017. (Available for pre-order on Amazon, B&N, BookDepository, etc.)

Dan lives in Israel with his family.

*** Download a free book at http://dansofer.com

From the Author

For two thousand years, the People of Israel has waited for the Final Redemption.
The wait has ended...

According to Jewish traditions (based on the Old Testament), the End of Days will involve a Resurrection of the Dead, a Messiah King, an Ingathering of Exiles, a Rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem, a World War, great upheavals, and a very large banquet of fish (or, in the very least, a very large fish).

What if the Messianic Era began today?

This series of novels, The Dry Bones Society, serves up one possible scenario of how all that might pan out, along with healthy side helpings of romance and action, humor and adventure, as well as an introspective look at the State of Israel and, while we're at it, the state of humanity.

Book 1: An Unexpected Afterlife (March 2017)
Book 2: An Accidental Messiah (October 2017)
Book 3: TBA (2018)

 
MY THOUGHTS
 (You Only Live Twice?) I wasn't really sure if I would enjoy this or not but I'm glad I decided to read it.  It's a mixture of characters who have a depth to them. They aren't simple characters. They are very complicated which makes them interesting.  The author gives you characters that you want to understand and get to know.  The characters are more realistic since they are far from perfect, they have their baggage. There are quite a few characters that are a support for each other.   Moshe Karlin has been dead for about two years, yes dead, but he awakens and finds he is in Mount of Olives Cemetery, completely naked.    He then finds his way to his home and his wife, but when he gets there, his wife and best friend are in bed together.   Moshe finds himself alone, with no home, and no wife.  So he seeks out the one who buried him, Rabbi Yosef hoping to get some answers.  He now knows he will never have his wife back since she soon is to marry his best friend, or who was his best friend, and on top of that, his business is gone.  He has nothing.   Why has he returned from the dead? Moshe is given a second try at life and he certainly knows it won't be easy. But he realizes he hadn't made his first life meaningful, made some bad choices and didn't take to heart what was most important. He wants to make this second life better, but can he do that? But  he soon finds that he isn't the only one who has returned from the dead.  There are others. The author gives you interesting characters, each with their own personalities. You get a bit of the Russian Mob, problems in the city's government, suspense, mystery and a look at the beliefs and structure of Judaism.  A variety of things that the author has molded together to bring a good story of hope.  But there is also the struggle of coming back form the dead for a second chance at life.  Adjusting is difficult.  It all lies in how a person decides to live their life.  Everyone chooses differently.
 
The book will tug at your heart strings, in both directions.  Heart warming and heart breaking.  Does everyone deserve a "do over" or a "Mulligan" better known as a second chance?  Take  time to read this book and decide if you would deserve or even want a "second chance".  Would you learn from the mistakes in your first life and do things completely different in your second life.?   Some would, some would not.  Some would change the things they did wrong, the wrong choices. Some would throw away the second chance, probably as they did the first.  Everyone has to make the choices that affect their lives by themselves at the end, no one can do it for you.  If you choose wrong, it's on you, no one else.  What would you do?

I received a copy of this book from the author and voluntarily decided to review it.

I would give this book 4 STARS. 

AMAZON REVIEW LINK
GOODREADS REVIEW LINK